Police to offer monetary reward in missing children cases

In an effort to find the country's missing children, the National Police Department »»

In an effort to find the country's missing children, the National Police Department will offer a monetary reward of up to TL 100,000 for anyone who provides information on the whereabouts of any missing child whose life is thought to be at risk, the Bugün daily reported on Monday.

Police are currently searching for 1,800 missing children in the country. Approximately 1,600 of these are between the ages of 13 and 18, while the remaining are under the age of 12. Roughly 1,100 of the missing children are female and 700 are male.

The National Police Department's new monetary reward project has emerged as a source of hope for thousands of families who are desperately searching for their missing children. The project will be put into place in accordance with a relevant article which is to be included in the Police Duties and Authorities Law (PSVK).

The National Police Department will initially offer a monetary reward for information on the whereabouts of children under 12 who are more likely to have been abducted or killed. Police categorize such cases as “desperate.”

A high-ranking official from the National Police Department told Bugün that not everyone who contacts the police with information regarding a missing child will receive money.

“We will offer money in cases where children are believed to have been kidnapped or raped,” the official said.

The reward will vary between TL 25,000 and TL 100,000 in accordance with the nature of the case in question. The identity of the informant will not be revealed for security reasons.

A financial reward for a missing individual was first offered by the National Police Department in the case of a Justice and Development Party (AK Party) city council member who went missing four years ago in the central province of Kırşehir. The council member, Hasan Kırışık, went missing in 2008 and has not been heard from since. At the request of the Kırşehir Governor's Office the National Police Department offered a reward of TL 25,000 for anyone who notifies the police of Kırışık's whereabouts.